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Sodium Citrate And Changing Spheres

Decent Essays

I. Science Fair Question
How does the addition of sodium citrate and changing pH affect the ability of different foods to undergo spherification?
II. Background Research
Did you ever hear the term molecular gastronomy? This research paper is going to talk about spherification. Terms that will be discussed in this paper will include molecular gastronomy, spherification, chemical reactions, and solutions.
Molecular gastronomy is the area of food science that explores how to make these spheres, as well as other ways ingredients in our food are physically and chemically changed (Rowland). Molecular gastronomy looks at how molecules in our food change (Rowland). When you make dishes with pure compounds, it is difficult. Another way is to go back …show more content…

Sodium alginate and calcium chloride are two main chemicals in spherification. When you are doing spherification with food, it has to be in liquid form (such as fruit juice, soda, pudding, soup, or pureed fruit) (Rowland). In a blender, the food is mixed with sodium alginate to make a smooth solution. The food and sodium alginate mixture is then added, one drop at a time, into a bath of calcium chloride mixed with water. If everything works, the sodium alginate and food mixture turns into drop-size spheres when the calcium chloride comes into contact with the food and sodium alginate mixture. After the spheres are made, they can then be removed from the calcium chloride solution (using a spoon) and the served (Rowland). If you are trying to find alginate, look in seaweed. Alginate molecules are always found in seaweed. Hydrocolloid or gum are some other words for this molecule. This is because alginate has the ability to gel or thicken water. Alginate has to be evenly spread out into the liquid that it is going to gel. There also has to be no lumps and the molecules to be surrounded by water or hydrated (ChefSteps). When you mix sodium alginate with any liquid can cause air bubbles to form. This can cause the liquid to be very dense. Air bubbles can be a problem with spherification because they can cause weak points in the sphere’s membrane and cause it to …show more content…

If you want the food to go through spherification right, it has to have a certain pH. If the food is too acidic, then spherification will not go well. To make the food less acidic, you add a third chemical, which is sodium citrate, to the food (Rowland). The flavor of the liquid is important in direct spherification. A pH of 3.6 alginate converts into algenic acid which is insoluble. This controls hydration. This also thickens the solution. When this happens, it is very hard to form good droplets. To fix this, add and alkaline ingredient. This is sometimes called buffering salt. When you add this, it elevates the pH of the liquid over 3.6 before adding sodium alginate (ChefSteps). The pH of an acid is somewhere between 0 and 7. The pH of a base is somewhere between 7 and 14. The liquids we see every day have a pH near 7. There are some acids that have a pH below 1 like battery acid. Some bases have a pH of 14 like drain cleaner, and sodium hydroxide. They are very dangerous (Andrew Rader). The pH of a liquid is information that is very important. pH test paper, pH indicator sticks, or pH meters make pH measuring very simple (Acids, Bases, and The pH Scale). pH is most likely the most important property of the moisture of soil that indicates what kind of crops will grow readily in the soil in agriculture. It also indicates what changes should be made to adjust for growing different types of crops. Soils

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